The year is 1963, and you just heard The Beatles’ “I Want to Hold Your Hand” on the radio for the first time. The song was by far the BEST song you have ever heard, so of course you’re willing to drive an hour and a half out to the record store to buy it. You climb into your car, sit in traffic for twenty minuets, and go around the block seven times to find a parking spot…just to find out that they’re sold out of the “I Want to Hold Your Hand” 45.
…
Unlike later generations, today’s teens are lucky enough to live in a world were music is at the tip of their finger tips. They can buy whatever song they want, whenever and wherever they want
(as long as they have WIFI). But in the past 10 years sales in vinyl have sky rocketed! You are now able to find vinyl at any music store, and at almost any department store (like Fred Meyer, Target, and ever Wal-Mart!). Wondering why there was a sudden spike in vinyl sales, I decided to check out a well known store that sells vinyl (Urban Outfitters) at the mall and I asked some of the teenagers shopping there some questions…and got some interesting answers.
“Bowie and The Beatles aren’t relevant anymore!” – Katie (17)
I checked out Urban Outfitters, a place notorious for selling over priced clothes and vinyl. I was happy to see a few teens checking out their vinyl selection (but sad for their wallets). I watched the shoppers before I went to ask them questions, I wanted to see what they were interested in that way I could ask specific questions. I spoke with three people while at Urban Outfitters:
- Jaysen (16) – Likes Foo Fighters, Led Zeppelin, and Metallica. Jayson said that he was just beginning his vinyl collection.
- Katie (17) – Likes Beyoncé, Fifth Harmony, and Melanie Martinez. Katie said that shes not looking for a collection, but owns a few.
- Brooklyn (17) – Like The Beatles, Lady Gaga, and Panic! At the Disco. Brooklyn said she has a collection, but doesn’t plan on expanding it much.
Question #1 – Would/Do you ever buy reissued vinyl?
Jaysen: “Oh yeah. I buy reissued vinyl all the time. A lot of rock n roll. Its cool listening to the same album my dad did as a teen, the same way he did too.”
Brooklyn: “Not really, I own a few though. But those are albums my mother bought me because she wants to listen to Rumors (Fleetwood Mac) on vinyl like she did as a child.”
and my favorite answer…
Katie: “No. Bowie and The Beatles aren’t relevant anymore. They had their time back in the 1960’s, but its time to move on to better things.” Which was interesting coming from a girl in a Led Zeppelin t-shirt and a denim coat covered in bands patches.
Question #2 – Would you buy original press vinyl?
Jaysen: “Yeah, It would be a lot cheaper than buying $40 Led Zeppelin. I just don’t know where to go to find original press.”
Brooklyn: “No, but only because my father is a collector and has just about anything on vinyl that originally came out in the 1960’s-70’s”
Katie: I decided not to ask…
Question #4 – If you had to choose between listening to music digitally or on vinyl, what would you choose? (and if they chose digitally, I asked why they were buying vinyl).
Jaysen: “Definitely digitally, because the sound quality is so much better.” “Well you really got my there, I guess its because its retro and cool.”
Brooklyn: “Digitally, I can take my music wherever with me! I can listen to it in the car, at school.” “Honestly, I started buying because it brought my dad and I closer musically. But then he started giving me a hard time about buying new albums on vinyl.”
Katie: “Digitally, I want to listen to my songs when and wherever.” “Because its the new and cool thing to do, I wouldn’t buy vinyl if it wasn’t cool.”
So after asking these questions, I came to the conclusion that the reason why most teenagers are purchasing vinyl is because its a fad. There are teenagers who are purchasing vinyl because the cool, edgy girl at school posts pictures of them on Instagram, while there are teens who are passionate about music and where is started and where its going. Although, digitally is the better and easier way to listen to music, you can’t beat the pops you hear from putting the needle on your favorite album.
- “File:Global Vinyl Sales Graph In US$.png.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Mar. 2017. Web. 20 Mar. 2017.
- Beyoncé, U2, and Lady Gaga albums were from Urban Outfitter’s website.
The Record Shop 